French channel under fire after commentator calls Hakimi 'Mbappe’s Dog'

Controversy broke loos this weekend among France and Morocco’s football fan bases online, after comedian and consultant Julien Cazarre descibed Achraf Hakimi as “Mbappe’s Dog” on a podcast broadcast on January 5 on the RMC Sport channel.

In the “Rothen S’enflamme” podcast, hosted by Jérôme Rothen, the French channel regular Cazarre made derogatory comments towards Hakimi, which did not fail to cause a wave of backlash on social networks, and among PSG supporters.

Julien Cazarre commented on a trip both Mbappe and Hakimi took while on vacation to the United States, saying: “I am going there with my dog… my dog Achraf. Eh Achraf?”

He then went on to mimick the Moroccan player’s heavy Spanish accent, and barked several times before assimilating the first name “Achraf” to a bark.

J’en peux plus de ces connards de pseudo comiques?? et de leur humour de gros beauf
On a l’accent couscous garbit de Nasser, les aboiements (Achraf,Achraf) d’@AchrafHakimi qui serait le chien de M’bappé??‍♀️)
Et le “hey t’as pas envie d’appeler ton chien Achraf”
?bravo @RMCsport pic.twitter.com/NsJGDhwSLL

— JamS ۞ (@Lilacwine94) January 5, 2023

Rothen, heavily questioned on Twitter, asked fans to “relax,” arguing that Cazarre is “a comedian… you either like it or you don’t.”

Détend toi. C’est Julien Cazarre. Il est le premier à se moquer de moi. Et tout ce qu’il fait et dit je ne cautionne pas tout t’inquiète pas pour moi. Mais c’est un humoriste…on aime ou on aime pas. Mais ne va pas me faire un procès gratuit stp.

— Jérôme Rothen (@RothenJerome) January 6, 2023

After much criticism, Julien claimed that his remarks were just a joke, while supporters online maintained that he deliberately  tried to belittle the Moroccan player.

Thousands of people criticized the statements  and the French channel, calling on them to issue an official apology to the Moroccan player.

Moroccan journalist Salek Boujdour condemned Cazzare’s blatant disrespect on Twitter, calling the clip “abhorrent racism,” voicing his disappointment for the RMC Sport channel for not deleting the podcast episode or issuing an apology.

العنصرية المقيتة هذا الشخص أعلى الصورة كوميدي ??تافه يسمى “Julien cazzare قام بالاساءة لأشرف حكيمي على قناة فرنسية”قناة RMC” ويقول ضاحكا بأن “حكيمي” سافر مع صديقه “كليان مبابي” إلى أمريكا بوصفه “كلبا له” وهذا الكلام على قناة فرنسية، ولم تقم القناة بحذف الحلقة ولم تقدم أي اعتذار pic.twitter.com/PEAHj4TOQV

— Boujdour Salek السالك بوجدور (@SalekBoujdour) January 6, 2023

A commenter on the outrageous video wrote: “Shame on the amateurs. Is this supposed to be funny?”

“Personally, it did not make me laugh, on the contrary,” wrote another, addressing the management of the chain. “I’m counting on you to do the job and issue fair penalties to the owner of the program…”

Another protested: “It is incredible to see two young men appreciating each other made shocking. Would it have seemed better to see them arguing or insulting each other? ”

“When it’s to insult a Muslim, it’s freedom of expression. But if it concerns someone else, all media would be indignant. It’s the French reality,” said another outraged fan on Twitter, in response to the clip.

Upon his arrival at Paris-Saint-Germain, Achraf Hakimi quickly befriended Kylian Mbappé. For nearly two years, the two footballers have offered one of the best relationships on and off the pitch.

This was also highlighted during the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, when the two PSG players met at the Moroccan hotel to spend some time together during a day off. They met before and after the semi-final between France and Morocco, and captured the sport’s spirit after demonstrating great sportsmanship following a game that opposed their teams.

After the World Cup, the two stars returned to Paris to play two matches, including a home victory against Strasbourg during which former Real Madrid defender Hakimi brandished the jersey of his best friend at the end of the meeting.